Speaking two days in advance of a 60 Minutes special on the use of technological fraud, or mechanical doping, in cycling, the inventor of the hidden motors has said such devices may have been in the pro peloton for almost 20 years.

Earlier this week, Belgian Tom Boonen (Quick-Step Floors) made a bit of cycling history on Stage 2 of the Tour de San Juan as the first rider to win a UCI road race while using disc brakes. The implementation of disc brakes in the pro peloton has been an unquestionably dramatic affair, so this latest development — especially by a racer of Boonen’s caliber — will likely be seen by many as something of a milestone.

There are four main obstacles to forward motion when you ride a bike: aerodynamic drag, gravity, rolling resistance, and mechanical friction.

Of those, mechanical friction — created by the chain, bottom bracket bearings, hub bearings, pedal bearings, and rear derailleur pulley bearings — is the smallest value by far, and certainly much less significant than aerodynamic drag.

There will be another chance to earn a women’s professional cycling contract in your own home in 2017 as the unorthodox cycling talent identification program, the Zwift Academy, will be back and there is even the possibility that it could expand further by creating a virtual development team.

I’d like to recommend the article How to Become a ‘Super-ager’ which was published Dec 31, in the NY Times. I’ve read several articles on this topic. This was one of the better ones because it’s succinct and pretty clear.

Below is an interview on hormone response in swimmers, specifically Serum IGF-I, IGFBP-3 and ALS concentrations and physical performance in young swimmers during a training season. We have the latest article by H. Tourinho Filho ” Serum IGF-I, IGFBP-3 and ALS concentrations and physical performance in young swimmers during a training season.” Review his latest studies and complete research…

Below is an interview with Iñigo Mujika, a leading researcher on tapering and recovery, essential aspects for swimmers. In this interview, we also talk about taper and training loads for swimmers. You can follow him on Twitter @inigomujika or his website. Here is a complete list of his research. 1. Why is monitoring training loads important for swimming?…